Northwest NEWS

April 2, 2001

Preliminary project list available for public comment

WOODINVILLE - What improvements to our community should Woodinville invest in over the next six-years?
What kind of park, transportation, water quality, habitat and facilities projects should the city plan to build in order to meet future needs? The preliminary 2002-2007 Capital Improvement Plan (a list of 12 capital projects proposed by the City Council for development over the next six years) is now available for public comment.
The city is gathering comments until April 20 on the Preliminary 2002-2007 Capital Improvement Plan.
The Capital Improvement Plan (C.I.P.) is a list of priority projects, showing the estimated costs and source of revenue and funding for each project over a six-year period. The city reviews and updates the C.I.P. annually providing an opportunity for new projects to be added and priorities to be adjusted based on current needs.
Capital improvements are an important measure of a city's progress. It is also a difficult process of mixing and matching needs with fund sources that are always limited and sometimes restricted to certain kinds of projects.
In February city staff evaluated thirty-nine new and previously approved projects, with a total cost of over $123 million using a set of evaluation criteria developed from the Comprehensive Plan and adopted by the City Council. The total scores were then added up to identify 12 Tier 1 projects that can be funded with the city's approximately $20 million dollars of available revenue over the next six years.
This year's list of proposed projects reflects the impact that regional traffic patterns are having on city operations. Four of the five transportation projects are on state routes. The city is working with the Washington State Department of Transportation on long-term solutions.
The other transportation projects will continue to improve access in and around the downtown core.
The proposed parks projects are a balance to the intensive schedule of large road improvement projects.
There is a mix of land acquisition and facility improvements that supports the city's vision of open space and further development of sports fields in our community.
In response to the listing of Chinook salmon as "threatenedÓ"under the Endangered Species Act, surface water projects are heavily weighted toward salmon recovery and meeting the Interim Response Strategy Adopted by the City Council in early March.
Future funding levels for these and other surface water projects will depend on the Salmon Recovery Plan developed by the region.
TransportationParksSurface WaterSR202/127th PlaceLittle Bear Creek Lineal ParkAcquisition of corridor parcels177th Place CorridorSports Field and Facility Acquisition and ImprovementHabitat EnhancementsSR202/145th AvenueNeighborhood Park ProjectsStream Corridor Planting ProjectSR202/SR522 Interchange ImprovementFacilitiesSR522/195th InterchangeCivic/Community Center
If you would like to view a detailed copy of the proposed project list and comment on any of the proposed projects, you can access them on the city's Web site at HYPERLINK http://www.ci.woodinville.wa.us/government/projects-cip-2002.asp. http://www.ci.woodinville.wa.us/government/projects-cip-2002.asp or you can call Deborah Knight, assistant to the city manager at (425) 489-2700 extension 2266 for a copy of the recommended projects and comment forms.